


1980 - 1984

by Hex_DevourCake



Series: The Old One [2]
Category: Dead by Daylight (Video Game)
Genre: Am sorry for poor Anna tho, Amanda's a good big sister, And Amanda, Angst Warning, Evan doesn't really know better yet but that's not an excuse, F/M, Gen, I think Max has it the worst, Lil baby Ghostface, Past Child Abuse, Sorry not sorry Jake
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-28
Updated: 2020-01-27
Packaged: 2021-02-27 09:33:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 4,212
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22444891
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hex_DevourCake/pseuds/Hex_DevourCake
Summary: Evan's desperation for a son widens the rift between himself and his wife and daughter. Max just wants to go outside.
Relationships: Anna | The Huntress/Evan MacMillan | The Trapper, Max Thompson Jr. | The Hillbilly/Amanda Young | The Pig
Series: The Old One [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1601092
Comments: 2
Kudos: 14





	1. 1980 - Anna

It was time to hunt.

Anna stepped through the woods, away from the temple where the Old One was worshiped. The last two hunts were fruitless; the Old One was clearly displeased with either her or Evan, as their last two sacrifices had failed to produce the son Evan desired, or any child at all.

Truthfully, Anna would be happy with Amanda. Every month she bled, she had to deal with Evan's disappointed look. As if it were her fault... maybe it was. Her first hunt alone had resulted in the blessing of their daughter, so perhaps that was the Old One's expectation.

Anna followed the trail of flattened grass and leaves brushed from bushes. Her prey had come this way, and recently. No, she couldn't be far behind him, but something was different from her previous hunts.

She had learned to track by listening quietly, remaining alert. The birds would tell her if there was something that didn't belong, and when she got close, she just had to search until she heard the heavy, quick breathing of her prey.

But the birds stayed still and quiet in the trees. All was still. It was time to try something different.

Anna began to hum, the same tune she used to soothe Amanda to sleep, just as her mother had done for her. She would set her prey at ease, and they would relax enough to make a mistake.

They had to. The hunt had to be completed. The sacrifice had to be made and the Old One had to be pleased.

Anna turned and began to walk back the way she'd come. She would make him think she lost his trail... this one, a young Asian man with tousled black hair, dark eyes and one determined look back at her as they let him have his head start, he was different.

Usually, they just ran. They ran for the trees, not expecting her throwing hatchets or Evan's bear traps, or that they'd be easily tracked. Her first hunt, he tried to hide, but his heavy breathing and scent of cigarette smoke gave him away.

Anna was 30 meters away from where she'd 'lost' the trail when she heard the snap of a bear trap. Just a snap, not a scream. He'd... disarmed it? She turned and went back that way, looking over the trap.

No, he had not disarmed it. The trap laid in two pieces. He'd broken it. Evan wouldn't be pleased, Anna smiled to herself beneath the rabbit mask, still humming.

She looked around for any signs of a new trail. He couldn't have gone far. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a hint of forest green peeking out from behind a boulder, then watched it move fully behind the boulder. Not so clever after all. She moved closer to the boulder, around the side she'd seen the peek of his jacket.

She expected to see a surprised face, a macabre version of Amanda's expression when she found her during hide and seek; instead of glee, fear replacing that determination. But... he wasn't there.

Her head whipped around as she heard the snapping of a twig, and she saw him take off running. Anna raised a hatchet as the young man looked back at her, the same determined, almost defiant look in his dark eyes.

She let the hatchet fly, and watched the young man fall and tumble forward with a strained yell. The birds who'd betrayed her finally flocked from their perches. She'd hit him squarely in the left shoulder, a deep wound. He'd bleed out easily, but she never let them suffer.

He was trying to crawl away from her, and Anna was sure he was going to try to pull himself up and run again. Fighting his inevitable fate. He would bleed out, even if he somehow got away. His grunts of pain were muffled, and soon he turned onto his side. His face contorted in horror as he saw her standing over him, axe raised high.

He held up an arm and tried to shake his head. She could see the confusion and terror in his eyes. He'd never understand why his life was ended. Hopefully, it was being traded for another's. 

“No, wa--”

Anna didn't let him suffer, burying the axe in his skull, nearly cleaving it in two.

She pulled it out with a sickening slushing sound. The axe had landed squarely between his eyes, which were still wide open. Anna knelt down and closed them.

Perhaps, if the Old One blessed her with the son Evan so desired... he would be able to traverse these woods undetected, too.


	2. 1981 - Amanda

It had been six months since her little brother was born. Amanda had a vague idea of what to expect from what her friends at school said; Mom would have to spend more time with the baby. He would cry and sleep a lot. He would get a lot of new toys and clothes, and he'd get them often, because babies grew fast.

What Amanda didn't expect was that Father would spend time with the baby. About every other time she went to the nursery, he was there, holding the baby. Smiling at the baby. Speaking softly to the baby.

It made her wonder if maybe he was like that when she was a baby. She was only seven, but she could count the number of times her father had smiled at her on one hand. Sure, she got lots of presents for Christmas and her birthday, but it was obvious that Mom picked them out. Father never seemed to have time to help her with her homework, or even look at what she made in art class, but he was always there when she accidentally broke something, or talked back to anyone.

Maybe he just liked babies better, and when her little brother got older, Father would treat him the same way.

Mom and Father weren't here now, in the nursery. She was always told to let the baby sleep, and she was; she didn't say anything as she peered over the edge of the crib. A lot of her classmates often said they hated their little brothers and sisters, but what Amanda felt wasn't hate, she knew. She wasn't angry... maybe a little jealous? She wanted Father to smile at her that way, but no matter what she did, it didn't happen. This baby gurgled and Father was overjoyed.

That wasn't Danny's fault. That was what Amanda decided to call him; his name was Daniel, and Father always said it that way, but Amanda knew that might be hard for Mom to say properly. Mom could speak English, yeah, but it seemed like she didn't like the way she spoke, how she didn't know a lot of words. It was okay for Amanda; Mom taught her how to speak in her own language, and while she still didn't speak a whole lot, it was a lot easier.

She'd have to teach Danny how to talk to Mom. Father didn't seem to get it, so she was the only one who could. That filled her with a new sense of pride. There were lots of things she'd have to teach him. The secret passageways that Father thought she didn't know about, how to skin an animal to get the most out of its parts; Mom's hands were kind of big, so it would be a lot easier for Amanda to show him how to hold the knife, with her small hands.

Amanda reached into the crib and grabbed Danny's hand, but it didn't wake him. “I'll teach you lots of stuff, okay?” she promised him. Somehow, she knew he understood. She knew he'd appreciate it. He was going to be her little partner in crime. She just had to wait a little while.

“Amanda.” Amanda pulled her hand away, turning to see her mother. “...you want to see him?”

Amanda nodded. “Yeah. I know I'm supposed to let him sleep, but Father's always hogging him.”

Anna nodded, agreeing with the sentiment. She barely got to hold her own son unless it was to feed him. “I won't tell.”

“I'm calling him Danny,” Amanda said, smiling proudly.

“Danny. Hmm...” Anna smiled back at her. “Yes.” She knew that Evan wouldn't like his son being addressed so informally, but it was two against one.

“Mom...” Amanda fidgeted, wringing her hands. “Did Father hold me a lot when I was a baby?”

Anna swallowed thickly, but said, “Da.”

It was a quick answer, even though her tone was different and her voice had dropped low. Amanda suddenly found herself confused. Why didn't Mom sound happy about it?

And that was when Amanda realized... Mom wasn't happy about it.

Mom lied.


	3. 1981 - Anna

Anna knew that the birth of her son was not as easy as her daughter. She didn't know why; the doctor spent months saying that second and third children were so much easier. But it was more than just painful, there was an innate sense that something was wrong. The pain was too intense for her to articulate it... maybe her memory of Amanda's birth had softened but it couldn't have been like this.

She could smell the blood, a thick coppery scent that sat on her tongue when she inhaled short breaths. Faintly, she heard the panic in the doctor's voice, and Evan's anger as he was pushed out of the delivery room. Everything faded away, and when she awoke, it was just Evan, sitting in one of those uncomfortable chairs next to her hospital bed. It had been the middle of the night the last she remembered, but the sun streamed through the blinds brightly, so much so that she couldn't look in that direction.

She looked at Evan, her eyes heavily lidded. There were dark circles under his eyes, like when he stayed in his study all night. She remembered when Amanda was born, the tiny baby girl was immediately laid on her chest, even though she was pale and speckled with blood. Anna didn't care, because she felt so complete in that moment. She wanted to feel that again. “My son...”

“He's fine,” Evan said immediately. Anna sighed in relief. “They're feeding him.”

Wasn't she supposed to do that? It made her heart hurt, that not only did someone else hold her son first, but they fed him first as well. 

“How are you feeling?” He asked. She hadn't heard tenderness in his voice for what felt like years, and it was comforting. 

“Tired,” she said honestly. Her tongue felt heavy and her throat was dry and her words felt thicker than normal.

“You lost a lot of blood,” he said. “The doctor said it was some kind of rupture... They had to take you to surgery.”

Anna lifted the thin white sheet, and confirmed that there was a large, rectangular bandage the length of her waist.

Evan looked away. She could hear the toe of his shoe tapping against the tiled floor, his fingers repeatedly running over each other. He was nervous... this was new. What could possibly make him nervous? With his imposing presence and his status as the CEO of MacMillan Mining and the master of their vast estate, he made other people nervous.

“What?” she asked simply. Evan opened his mouth, but so did the door.

Anna didn't quite hear the doctor's explanation. Some of the words, she didn't understand... and some of what she did understand, she couldn't process. Her mind went blank, Evan's voice was distant, she couldn't make out what he was asking her, even when she tried to focus on reading his lips.

There wouldn't be anymore children. Her womb had torn during labor, and once they removed the baby, it had to be removed, too. She thought that now that Evan had his son... they could have more children, with no expectations of them, as many as Anna wanted. She and Evan could both have what they wanted.

Anna wasn't sure whether to cry or scream, but based on the doctor's sudden jump, it ended up being the latter. Her cheeks were wet too, and she could barely breathe. She grabbed for anything she could take her anger and grief out on, throwing it like one of her hatchets. There was fast, high pitched beeping, and the doctor yelling, Evan shooting to his feet to pin her arms down as she struggled. Everything felt broken, and she was so angry, at the doctor, at Evan, at herself...

“I'm sorry...” was the last thing she made out. There was a pin prick and everything faded away again.


	4. 1981 - Evan

Anna was asleep again, as he sat next her bed, his stomach tightly knotted. At least he'd had the good sense not to bring Amanda to the hospital yet; she only knew her mother as gentle, strong and protective, he never wanted her to see Anna like that.

He couldn't imagine how she felt. As much as he desired a son, Anna was desperate for children. Any family that would make her feel less alone. He knew that she had wanted to try again soon, now that there was no pressure for a son. He remembered how overjoyed she was with Amanda's birth... how would this affect her relationship with their son, with his birth being tied to what was probably the most traumatic thing to happen to her? 

He shook his head. No, that was a horrible thought. She would love Daniel just as much as Amanda, and probably love both of them even more than she already did, to make up for all of the children she wouldn't have now.

He wanted to put his fist through a wall, but it wouldn't do if they sedated him, too. He needed to be there when Anna woke up. She would probably resent him, too, even if it was for her own good. The flailing and throwing things could have torn open her stitches.

The door opened and he picked his head up to see a nurse wheeling his son in a plastic bassinet. She stopped at the end of the bed, smiling at him.

She was a pretty young woman, with soft brown eyes and auburn hair pulled back into a half ponytail. Light makeup, and dark red scrubs that complimented her skin and hair. Compared to Anna, she was small and weak, but Anna's imposing frame and strength meant nothing, it turned out. It didn't protect her from what was arguably the worst thing that had ever happened to her.

“Thank you,” he said to the nurse. Her name tag said Sally. She nodded and smiled at him; he briefly wondered if that was appropriate, given the situation, but she left him alone with his wife and son.

He stood up and moved to his son. He seemed very small, though the doctor said he was healthy. He expected that with his and Anna's similar sizes, their children would be above average at least, but maybe it was better that they weren't. If Amanda were, this could have happened sooner, and they might not have had the opportunity to have Daniel.

He picked the baby up carefully, cradling him with his head in the crook of his elbow. It had taken so long to get Daniel... they prayed to the Old One religiously, completing his family's duty, but still, there were seven years between Amanda and Daniel and it had strained their already tense marriage. He tried to focus on the sleeping infant in his arms. He already showed signs of the traditional Macmillan good looks; Evan's dark hair and square face. Of course, the baby's chin was round now, but he could see it growing into a strong jawline.

He smiled. He still felt terrible for Anna, but... it was hard to feel too awful about anything when he looked at his son. He hoped Anna would feel the same way when she woke.


	5. 1981 - Max

It was dark and humid in his room, up on the top floor of the farmhouse. The windows boarded up, so none of the farm hands could see him. His bedroom door locked, to prevent him from leaving and showing the world what the son of Max and Evelyn Thompson looked like.

Not that he wanted to. He had no desire to see anyone else look at him with the same disgust as his mother, the same immediate and unwarranted anger as his father.

He remembered one night, a few years ago, the door to his room had been left unlocked. With an even measure of fear and curiosity, he'd opened the door, crept down the stairs, and ever so carefully and slowly, left the farmhouse.

The corn fields came up to the fence around the house, green stalks and long leaves. He touched them, finding them somehow both rough and smooth. He inhaled the fresh air, so much cleaner than the stale, musty air in his room. The moonlight softly illuminatied the fields and the barn house beyond. 

As he followed one of the aisles between the rows of corn, he wondered if anyone would even see him. The corn grew so closely together, as long as he was quiet, no one would even know he was there. He explored everywhere; the giant tractors for moving bales of hay, the big red barn with its loft. He could hide there the same way he was hidden away in his room. The silo, where bags of something called 'plant food' and canisters labeled 'pesticide' were kept.

He didn't notice the sky brightening until the sun had almost rose, and he ran back to the farmhouse as fast as he could. It wasn't fast enough to get back to his room before Max Sr. woke up and started his coffee. And with the simple floor plan of the farmhouse, there was only the front door and the side door, and one set of stairs up to the second level. He managed to get through the side door, carefully avoiding the kitchen where he could hear the dripping of the coffee into the pot and the clink of a mug being set on the counter. He didn't hear the soft slapping of Evelyn's slippers over the pounding of his heart. Caught up in his relief, he reached the top of the stairs as she rounded the corner. She froze for a moment in disbelief, then let out a piercing scream. His father came running.

The next part was a painful blur. Despite being so disgusted and enraged by his scars, his father didn't seem to be bothered about adding more. He remembered being thirsty, but his jaw was too sore to open his mouth wide enough to drink, and there were no visits from sundown to the next sun up, and through the next sundown after, not even for food or water. The door was never accidentally left unlocked again.

Each time Max remembered it, he questioned it more. Why did his father forget to lock the door? Why did he forget at the night time check, not after a bathroom visit or a meal dropoff? Why didn't he check before heading downstairs in the morning? Little inconsistencies, deviations from the routine that made Max wonder... did his father actually forget?

Or was it a warning? 

It didn't matter. He'd go outside again one day, maybe soon. Even if they kept him locked in his room, the farmhouse walls were thin. He knew Max Sr. and Evelyn argued about the expansion of the farm, about hiring more hands and even a manager, about how they would continue to keep his existence a secret from a growing number of people. It just wasn't possible. Eventually, someone would find out, and with Max's existence revealed, so would be their neglect.

Max didn't know how he felt about it. His own parents only ever reacted to him with fear, anger and disgust... strangers had even less reason to tolerate his existence.

Maybe that didn't matter, either. All he wanted was to go outside again. To touch the corn again, smell the fresh air, see the moon, lay in the stale, prickly hay in the barn loft. Even if everyone hated him.

It was the only thing that soothed him to sleep.


	6. 1984 - Anna

The loud snap of a bear trap sounded through the house, seeming even louder to Anna as it brought with it the fear of one of her children being caught in its jaws.

There was no scream, but Anna rushed to the source of the sound; the trophy room. Was it Danny or Amanda? They knew they weren't allowed in there unsupervised, but the little weasels were always sneaking around. More than once, they'd jumped out at the maids, sending frightened shrieks throughout the house.

Anna stopped a few feet from the door of the trophy room. Evan had beaten her to it.

“You know better, Amanda.” Evan's voice was firm, and Anna listened intently from the hall, just beyond the doorway. Evan tended to be too hard on their daughter, but maybe this time, Anna would be in agreement with him. She wanted to be.

“I know, but I just wanted to see how it works, dad--”

“Daniel copies everything you do, don't you think you should set a better example?”

Anna bristled, her lips curling into a scowl. Amanda was only ten, hardly responsible for setting an example for her three year old brother. And truthfully, Anna didn't like Evan scorning Amanda's interest in his bear traps; she treated Amanda's interest in hunting as a bonding activity, but Evan never seemed interested in bonding with Amanda. Danny, on the other hand...

“But I disarmed it right...” Amanda's voice quivered, and Anna's eyes narrowed.

“That's not the point, Amanda. You were explicitly told to stay out of the trophy room, and not to touch the traps or anything else sharp.” She could hear Evan's deep, exasperated exhale.

“I thought you'd be proud that I figured it out on my own.” Amanda's voice was quieter and shaky.

But Evan's voice got sterner, almost angry in response. “You--”

Anna couldn't stand it any longer, and stepped into the trophy room. It was hers as much as his; despite his aptly named 'bear traps', the taxidermy bear in the corner of the room was her trophy, as well as several of the badgers and foxes. The deer and elk mounted on the walls... those were Evan's. Well, in a way, they were hers; gifts for her early in their marriage, trying to connect with her through her fear of the antlered game.

“Go to your room, Amanda.” She looked pointedly at Evan, and Amanda quickly left before Evan could contradict.

“She needs to be punished. She could have hurt herself, or Daniel.” Evan met her gaze, unwavering.

“...what if it was Danny?” Anna asked.

Evan paused. “What do you mean?”

“Would you punish him?” Anna said, trying her best to keep her tone calm. She wanted to agree that Amanda could have hurt herself, or her example could have led to Danny hurting himself, but she couldn't agree with the way Evan was handling it. Amanda just wanted to be close to him, and he just wanted to punish her for it.

“That's irrelevant. Daniel wasn't the one in here. But if Amanda isn't punished, he'll be in here next, and he might not be as careful.”

It was an evasive answer, because Anna knew the truth. If Danny had successfully disarmed the trap without injuring himself, and wanted to know how it worked, Evan would have sat him down and taught him how to dissassemble it, sharpen the jaws and grease the hinges, and reassemble it. He'd teach him the name of every single piece of the trap. Evan just wouldn't say it out loud.

“Grounded, not allowed outside,” Anna conceded. She couldn't make Evan say it, but she also wouldn't give him any reason to call her an unfit mother who spoiled their children.

Evan's lips tightened, but he nodded. “One week.”

“One week,” Anna agreed. Amanda would be upset, but it was hardly a punishment. They would play hide and seek with Danny, and Amanda had more books and toys than Anna even knew existed when she was a child.

Anna tried to find the words to express what she wanted to say... she wanted to be honest, but she didn't want to fight. How could she ask Evan why he couldn't treat Amanda with the same tenderness as Danny? What was it about Amanda that caused him to react so coldly to their daughter's slightest misstep? English was not her first language, and she didn't have the same education as Evan. She'd learned more from Amanda than in the rest of her life. Maybe in Russian, she could explain, but Evan had never bothered to learn Russian.

By the time she opened her mouth, Evan turned to stalk out of the trophy room, and Anna was left to go to Amanda's room and comfort their daughter while explaining that she was grounded for trying to share in her father's interests.


End file.
